The New Girl
by Sarahjane
Summary: A new teacher comes to Winslow.
1. Getting to Know You

DISCLAIMER: All recognizable characters are not mine. They belong to good old DK and are used here without permission for no financial gain.  
  
Author's Note: This takes place NEXT year, in the 2001-2002 school year. Yeah, I know, it's not here yet, but I need a whole year for my story. Anyway, r/r!  
  
The New Girl  
Getting to Know You  
  
Steven Harper shook his head in frustration. They had lost so many teachers...he didn't know how he could possibly fill the spots. Especially the math classes. Their Calculus teacher had quit last year, and he had been unable to find a replacement.  
  
Suddenly, an idea popped into his head. "Louisa!" he called. "Can you get me the phone book?"  
  
After she had given it to him, he flipped through it until he found the right page. He dialed the number and waited anxiously for the person to answer. "Hello? This is Steven Harper. I need a favor."  
  
*****  
  
Scott Guber was walking down the halls, searching for students. It was the first day of school, and many were still loitering in the hallways, unwilling to go to class.  
  
He spotted a short, thin girl with brown hair. She carried a backpack so large that he was surprised that she was able to stand up. In one hand was a violin case.  
  
"Excuse me," he said as he walked up to her. "Why aren't you in class Miss..."  
  
"MacCarthy, but actually..."  
  
"I don't know if you are aware of it, Miss MacCarthy, but here at Winslow we expect the students to go to class on time."  
  
"Yes sir, but you don't understand..."  
  
"Who is your teacher this period?"  
  
"Actually, I don't go to this school," she finally managed to say.  
  
"Oh really. Then what are you doing here? What school do you attend?"  
  
"No, you don't understand..."  
  
"I think that I understand perfectly, Miss MacCarthy. Now come with me. We can clear this up in my office."  
  
The girl looked around desperately. "Steven!" she said loudly.  
  
Steven walked up to them. "Ah, Caitlin, Scott, I see that you two have met."  
  
"Not really," the girl said sardonically.  
  
"Well then," Steven said. "Caitlin, this is our vice-principal, Scott Guber. Scott, this is the new Calculus teacher, Caitlin MacCarthy."  
  
Scott looked at the girl in shock. "What?"  
  
"I guess you won't be reporting me for truancy," she said, raising her eyebrows at him.  
  
Scott looked like he was having trouble breathing. "I am very sorry about the mistake, Miss MacCarthy. If you will excuse me..."  
  
Caitlin watched in amusement as Scott turned and practically ran down the hall.  
  
"I'm sorry about that, Caitlin," Steven said.  
  
"No problem, Steven. Maybe I should carry around a permanent hall pass," she joked.  
  
"Thank you again for doing this. We were in big trouble without a math teacher."  
  
"Well, I'm just glad that you thought of me," she said cheerfully. "I'm glad to be doing it. I need something to keep me busy until next year."  
  
"Julliard, isn't it?" She nodded, and Steven shook his head. "You certainly are amazing, Caitlin. Only 18 years old, and you already have a doctorate in math from Harvard, *and* you're going to Julliard."  
  
"I don't know if I'm actually going," she corrected as they walked down the hall. "I have to audition."  
  
"You'll get in," he said. "I remember when you were here you were always walking around with that violin. You played in the auditorium every day at lunch, and everyone would always come to listen."  
  
She smiled. "It's great to be back."  
  
"Well, it's great to have you back. I hope that the rest of the day goes more smoothly."  
  
"Thanks, Steven. I'm going to head over to my class now."  
  
"All right. I'll see you later."  
  
Steven turned and walked down to his office. Scott was waiting for him there.  
  
"Steven, what were thinking?" Scott asked without preamble.  
  
"Whoa, Scott, what are you talking about?" he demanded.  
  
"How could you hire that girl to teach here? She must be about 16 years old!"  
  
"She's 18, Scott, and she'll be a great teacher. She already has a Ph.D. from Harvard in math. We'd be lucky to get a teacher with her credentials."  
  
"She's only 18, Steven! How can she possibly hope to keep order? She's probably not even licensed to teach!"  
  
"I talked to the superintendent," Steven said. He was trying to be patient, despite Scott's ravings. "She said that Caitlin can teach her. After all, she could teach at a university if she wanted." Steven tried to mollify him. "Scott, relax. Everything will be fine."  
  
Scott marched out of Steven's office and resumed his prowl through the halls. As he neared the math classroom, he heard the most beautiful music. He peered in through the window. Caitlin sat on her desk, eyes squinched shut, playing the most beautiful music on her violin.  
  
He stood there for a while, completely mesmerized. He watched her until the bell rang. Then he jumped in surprise and hurried off, trying desperately to ignore the feelings that rushed through him. 


	2. A First Time for Everything

Part 2: A First Time for Everything  
  
Every morning, Caitlin MacCarthy would sit on her desk and play her violin with her eyes tightly closed. For some reason that she didn't quite understand, no matter how hard she tried, the minute the violin bow went up, her eyelids went down. Her quirk certainly did not adversely affect her performance. She was a great violinist, as all of the teachers near her would affirm.  
  
Scott Guber could also support that fact, although he would deny it. Every morning he found himself drawn to that hall. He would stand by her door, entranced by her music until the bell jerked him from his reverie and sent him scurrying down the hall.  
  
Caitlin was perfectly aware of Scott's feelings for her. After all, she wasn't blind. Several times, she had seen Scott flee from her doorway. Also, she noticed that whenever she saw him, he seemed extremely flustered. At first she had just assumed that he was a naturally nervous person (which, she thought, was true), but he seemed particularly strange whenever he knew that she was around. The few times she had seen him without his noticing her, he had seemed relatively normal.  
  
But all in all, she tried to keep Scott Guber out of her mind. She enjoyed being back at Winslow High. Despite her initial misgivings, her Calculus students were extremely fond of her, and so were the other teachers.  
  
That Monday found her in the teacher's lounge. She always hung out there before the first bell, talking to the teachers, particularly Lauren and Marilyn.  
  
Scott Guber walked in. "Ah, Miss MacCarthy," he said.  
  
Caitlin had long since stopped correcting him (her reminders that she was really Dr. MacCarthy had gone unnoticed) or trying to convince him to call her Caitlin. "Yes, Mr. Guber?"  
  
"I need to evaluate your class. When should I come to observe?"  
  
She shrugged. "Whenever is convenient for you. What about second period?"  
  
"Fine. I will see you there." He turned and walked stiffly out of the room.  
  
"What's with Guber?" Marilyn asked.  
  
"Really," Harry said. "He seems even more...Guber-like than normal."  
  
Caitlin shrugged. "I don't know. Anyway, I should be going. I'll see you guys later."  
  
Once upstairs, she whipped out her violin, closed her eyes, and began to play Vivaldi's "Four Seasons." It was one of her favorite pieces, and it gave her a sense of tranquility. A smile washed over her face, and she felt happy and peaceful.  
  
And outside, Scott listened in rapture to her playing and realized that he was in love.  
  
*****  
  
Caitlin's math class turned out to be interesting, Scott reflected. For one thing, she did not use the textbooks. She claimed to use "the MacCarthy method" of teaching, which seemed to involve writing problems on the board and lecturing. She had a dry sense of humor, and the students seemed to genuinely enjoy her class.  
  
Afterwards, he approached her.  
  
"What is this 'MacCarthy method' that you mentioned?" he asked.  
  
"Oh, that." She seemed a little embarrassed. "I'm writing a textbook, and I guess you could say that they're the guinea pigs. Every time I teach them something, I write it down. That way by the end of the year I'll have a complete textbook."  
  
"Ah," he said. "Well, I think that you will be a strong addition to our faculty."  
  
"I'm glad to hear that you no longer regret that Steven hired me," she remarked.  
  
Scott seemed very embarrassed. "Well, um..."  
  
She smiled. "Forget it. I'll see you later."  
  
"Yes," he managed to say. He turned and fled the room.  
  
*****  
  
At lunch, Caitlin walked down to the teachers' lounge and bought a coke. She sat down next to Lauren, Marilyn, and Harry.  
  
"Hey," Caitlin said.  
  
"Hi Caitlin," Lauren said.  
  
"Hey. Those kids giving you a hard time?" Harry asked.  
  
"Oh yeah," she replied. "You know how wild those A.P. Calculus kids are."  
  
Harry smiled. "Want to switch?"  
  
"I think I'll stick with my students, thanks," she said dryly. "What about you?"  
  
The four of them chatted about their day until Scott Guber walked into the room.  
  
"Hello," he said. "Miss MacCarthy, may I speak with you for a moment?"  
  
"Sure, Mr. Guber."  
  
"Outside," he added.  
  
"Oh, okay." She stood up and followed him outside. "Do you need something?"  
  
"No. I just wanted to know if you would like to come with me to see the New York Philharmonic on Friday. They are in town this weekend, and I would love to see them with you."  
  
"That'd be nice, but I'm busy."  
  
"Doing what?"  
  
"Selling my plasma."  
  
He blinked. "You're what?"  
  
"I'm selling my plasma. I have very rare plasma," she explained, "and I get $200 every time I sell it."  
  
"That sounds like a rather painful way to make money."  
  
"It doesn't hurt," she assured him. "Anyway, I'm broke right now, because I won't get my paycheck for several weeks, and I spent most of my savings moving into my apartment." She smiled apologetically. "Maybe next time."  
  
"We could always go out after you finished," he suggested.  
  
"I also have to unpack," she added. "I have tons of boxes in my apartment right now."  
  
"Oh. Well then..."  
  
"We could always go next weekend," she offered.  
  
"They are only in town this weekend. Perhaps you would like to get dinner next weekend, though."  
  
"Oh. Sure, that would be nice."  
  
"Wonderful." He gave her a nervous smile. "I will pick you up at 8:00."  
  
"All right. Bye."  
  
She walked back into the teachers' lounge slightly stunned. "I think Scott Guber just asked me out on a date."  
  
"You think?" Marilyn asked.  
  
"Well, I've never been on a date before. I'm pretty sure he did, though. First he asked me if I would like to see the New York Philharmonic with him..." Caitlin stopped. Marilyn and Lauren were laughing. "What?"  
  
"Nothing," Lauren said. "Go on."  
  
"Well, I told him that I couldn't because I had to sell my plasma on Friday."  
  
"You have to what?" Harry asked.  
  
"Sell my plasma. I have very rare plasma, so they give me $200 every time I do it. Anyway, I told him that I couldn't go this Friday. Then he asked if I would go out to dinner with him next Friday."  
  
"What did you say?" Marilyn asked.  
  
"Yes."  
  
"Yes? Um, don't you think he's a little old for you," Lauren said.  
  
She shrugged. "I've never been on a date before. It might be interesting."  
  
"Interesting?" Lauren echoed incredulously.  
  
"Sure. Anyway, why not?"  
  
"Well, have fun." Marilyn was trying hard not to laugh.  
  
*****  
  
Next Friday, though, Caitlin was beginning to regret her decision. She felt really nervous, although she wasn't exactly sure why.  
  
"Maybe I should just call him and cancel," she said.  
  
"Don't," Marilyn told her as she carefully applied make-up to Caitlin's face. "You'll have a great time."  
  
"But I don't know...I've never been on a date before."  
  
"I thought you were looking forward to this," Lauren said, brushing Caitlin's brown hair until it shone.  
  
"Well, I was. But now I feel so nervous."  
  
"Everything will be fine," Marilyn reassured her.  
  
"Thanks again for coming over," Caitlin added.  
  
"No problem," Marilyn said.  
  
"We're happy to help," Lauren confirmed. She and Marilyn had offered to come over and help Caitlin get ready for her date after they had found out that Caitlin had never put on make-up before and had only a vague idea of what she should wear.  
  
The doorbell rang just as Marilyn was finishing up Caitlin's mascara.  
  
"I'll get it," Lauren said. She ran into the living room and opened the door. "Hi Scott."  
  
"Hello, Lauren." Scott looked even more nervous than Caitlin. "What are you doing here?"  
  
"Marilyn and I are helping Caitlin get ready. She should be out any minute now."  
  
Just then, Caitlin emerged from her bedroom. The make-up made her look much older, and the dress--a beautiful black one that she wore when she performed--added to the effect. All in all, she looked elegant and mature and much older than when she walked around Winslow in her jeans, lugging her backpack and violin case.  
  
"Hello, Caitlin," Scott gasped. "You look wonderful."  
  
"Thank you. So do you."  
  
"Well, you two have fun and we'll see you on Monday." Marilyn and Lauren left quickly.  
  
"Are you ready to go?" Scott asked.  
  
"Yes," Caitlin answered. "Where are we going?"  
  
"I made reservations at an Italian resteraunt downtown."  
  
"Okay, let's go." She smiled at him as they left.  
  
*****  
  
The date went wonderfully. He was very nervous (so was she, but she hid it better), but she managed to relax him quickly. They had fun talking together. All in all, it was a perfect evening.  
  
Back at her apartment, he said, "Well, here we are."  
  
"Would you like to come in?" she asked.  
  
"All right."  
  
The apartment was very small. It had a bedroom, a bathroom, a kitchen, and a small living room. The living room was filled with books. They were lined up neatly on a bookcase, but many more sat in neat piles on the floor. He read some of the titles. They seemed to cover almost every topic imaginable.  
  
"You certainly like to read," he remarked.  
  
"Yeah, I like everything. I'd offer you some coffee, but I don't drink it. I can offer you a Coke."  
  
"Uh, no thank you."  
  
"Okay." She sat down on the couch next to him and kissed him gently.  
  
He kissed her back, and soon they were kissing over and over again. She fell backward onto the couch.  
  
"We shouldn't," Scott suddenly said, pulling away.  
  
"Why not?"  
  
"You're too young. In fact, this entire evening was a big mistake."  
  
"What does age have to do with anything?"  
  
"It matters a lot. I'm 49 years old, and you're only 18."  
  
"So what? That doesn't mean that I can't like you...a lot."  
  
"You do?" He was surprised.  
  
"Yeah." She looked embarrassed.  
  
"Oh, well, I like you a lot too."  
  
"Then we're it's unanimous," she said. She smiled at him and kissed him again. "Come on." She stood up.  
  
"Where are you going?"  
  
"Well, unless you want to do things out here on the couch..."  
  
"Don't you think you're being a little forward?" he asked.  
  
"I know I am, but I like you a lot, and why bother waiting?"  
  
"Well, that's the way things are usually done."  
  
She gave him a mischevious smile. "But I don't like waiting."  
  
"Well then...I suppose there are always exceptions." He wasn't sure why he was saying this, but something pulled him to her.  
  
She stood up and walked into her bedroom. He followed. 


	3. Leaving Town

Author's Note: I've been having serious regrets about this series. I can see that it is a classic "Mary Jane"--Caitlin is the way too perfect person who I wish I could be. I thought about simply quiting it, but from my stats I see that a lot of people like it. So instead I've decided to finish and bury this series. Anyway, I hope you enjoy this. Please r/r!  
  
Part 3: Leaving Town  
  
Caitlin lay on Scott Guber's bed, staring up at the ceiling. She could hear him getting ready in his bathroom. The water was running and music--Beethoven's Fifth Symphony--was blasting out of the CD player in the bedroom. Normally she got up quickly, but today she lay quite still on the bed.  
  
Nine months. She couldn't believe that she had been dating him for nine months. It was already June. Commencement was in only two weeks and then...  
  
"Good morning Caitlin," he said, coming into the bedroom as he put on his tie. "Why are you still in bed? You're going to be late." He bent over and kissed her.  
  
"Mmmm." She sat up and watched him wave his fingers at the speakers with a look of concentration on his face. Normally his conducting made her smile, but this morning it just made her feel sad.  
  
Slowly she crawled out of bed and began to get ready for school with a heavy heart.  
  
*****  
  
Lauren Davis walked into the teacher's lounge that morning and noticed Caitlin sitting at one of the tables toying with a letter. Her customary can of Coke sat next to it.  
  
"What's wrong?" she asked as she sat down next to Caitlin. "What's the letter?"  
  
"It's from Julliard." Caitlin paused. "They want to make sure that I'll be there for the coming school year."  
  
"Oh, I almost forgot that you were doing that. Congratulations." Seeing Caitlin's serious expression, she added, "What's wrong? Aren't you excited?"  
  
"Oh sure. It's just...Scott."  
  
"Scott?"  
  
"I...I care a lot about him and I don't know...I'm not sure...this should be so easy! It's Julliard, it's my dream. But I just can't help but feel..." She smiled humorously. "He's my first boyfriend. Whenever I would think about my first boyfriend, I would always figure that it would be just some meaningless fling. But with him..." She groaned. "I don't know what I'm going to do."  
  
"Oh."  
  
"What's going on?" Marilyn walked into the teacher's lounge.  
  
"Caitlin's not sure about leaving to go to Julliard next year?"  
  
"What's to think about? You're so talented, you should go."  
  
"What about Scott?" Caitlin asked.  
  
"Are you guys serious?"  
  
"I don't know, but...I care a lot about him. I just don't know..."  
  
"...if you want to give everything up for him?" Marilyn finished.  
  
"Exactly." She smiled weakily. "It isn't wrong for me to feel this way, is it? I mean, I love him a lot, but I still want to do this."  
  
"Caitlin, do you want to spend the rest of your life here? You are so smart. You could do whatever you want."  
  
"But what about Scott? How can I just leave him?"  
  
"Trust us, Caitlin," Marilyn said, "guys come and go. This is only your first relationship. I know that you care a lot about him, but there will be others after him. An opportunity like this...I just don't think that you can give this up so easily."  
  
"I know. I know I should do this. I just don't know how to tell him."  
  
"We can't help you there," Lauren said.  
  
"Just tell him. He'll understand."  
  
"I hope so," Caitlin sighed.  
  
*****  
  
The day of commencement, Scott Guber left his apartment extra early to meet Steven. The day was unusually hectic. As a result, he didn't wind up seeing Caitlin until coommencement actually started.  
  
She looked beautiful in her black graduation robes, playing her violin on stage in front of everyone. The music floated through the building, and Scott closed his eyes, remembering when he had first heard her play in her classroom. Had it really been almost a year ago? He couldn't believe how long they had been together. She was a dream come true.  
  
Afterwards, he lost her in the crowd. He didn't see her again until he found her in the front hall. She was stood there with the rest of the teachers. Her bags were piled up in one corner, as was her violin case.  
  
"Caitlin! What are you doing?"  
  
She turned towards him slowly. "I'm saying goodbye."  
  
"Goodbye? Where are you going?"  
  
"I'm going to Julliard, Scott. I leave for the airport in a few minutes."  
  
"Julliard?" He realized that he had forgotten that she had told him that she would only be at Winslow for a year. "But...but..."  
  
"Goodbye Scott." She hugged him and kissed him gently. "I love you."  
  
"But Caitlin...no...you can't leave."  
  
"I have to go, Scott. I'll miss you."  
  
A horn sounded. A taxi had pulled up in front of the school. Caitlin said her final goodbyes, picked up her bags, and turned around to leave.  
  
Scott remained frozen in position. He could not believe that she was leaving. He wanted to run to her, to tell her not to go, to say that he loved her. He couldn't. All he could do was stand and watch.  
  
She walked away and pushed the doors open.  
  
"Wait, Caitlin!"  
  
She turned towards him. "Goodbye Scott."  
  
Then she once more turned around and walked away. She walked out of the school, down the steps, and into the waiting cab. Scott watched as the cab drove away. Only once she was out of sight did he at last speak.  
  
"Goodbye, Caitlin." 


End file.
